John Huxford’s Hiatus by Arthur Conan Doyle. Short summary

5 seconds

A young man leaves for work, after being beaten by bandits, loses his memory. He does not remember his past until fifty years later and returns to his fiancée, who has been waiting for him all these years.

1 minute

John Hoeksford, a young English laborer, is sent to Canada. He promises his sweetheart, Mary, that as soon as he gets settled, he will take her and her grandmother right away. The girl promises to wait.

But in Canada, John is beaten by bandits. He miraculously survives and completely loses his memory. By the initials on his clothes, the man is now called John Hardy. He has a successful career in a factory and becomes a manager. He lives in Canada for fifty years.

One day in the port he hears a familiar speech. It is the sailors from his hometown talking. At that moment, John’s memory returns to him. He goes to his hometown and learns that all these years Mary has been waiting for him. The woman is blind and terminally ill, but still believes in the return of her fiancé.

John cries. With joy that her lover has returned, Mary recovers. The lovers play a magnificent wedding.